


doubling down

by thelastfiveyears



Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Aaron Hotchner - Freeform, Aggressor, Assailant, Behavioral Analysis Unit (Criminal Minds), Crime, Crime Fiction, David Rossi - Freeform, Derek Morgan - Freeform, Emily Prentiss - Freeform, F/F, Fiction, Gang, Gen, Graphic Description, Heist, Murder, Mystery, Penelope Garcia - Freeform, Psychological, Psychological Thriller, Psychology, Psychosis, Spencer Reid - Freeform, Unsub - Freeform, Violence, Violent, criminal, criminal minds - Freeform, criminalminds - Freeform, jennifer jareau - Freeform, mafia, minds, perpetrator, philosophical, psychopathy, rob - Freeform, sociopolitical
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:14:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27545932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thelastfiveyears/pseuds/thelastfiveyears
Summary: it’s not normal to see the bau work against the fbi. they aren’t catching and putting away unsubs, they themselves are the unsubs. follow the team as they commit crime, chaos, and absolute bankruptcy.
Relationships: Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss, other - Relationship
Comments: 5
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> tw // graphic depictions of violence, angst, alcohol, smoking, etc

the museum’s hallways were dark and seemingly foggy, the skylights above making way for the moonlight to cast into the black space with its rays like smooth milk. the air was stagnant and stale, small dust particles being the only thing that accompanied the beautiful art pieces in the moment.

if you listened very closely, straining your ears, the slightest patter of a footfall echoed off the dark walls of the mainly empty museum. sometimes the triangular view of a flashlight would hit the paintings, violating their shadowy rest and showing them off to the stars, naked to the eye. the night guards were watching, keeping peace.

though, in the slightest moment, something shifted. the flicker of hazel eyes against tile, the silent brush of golden fingers countering concrete walls, muted lips speaking nonsensical words that only the statues could hear. it was quick enough to the point where no guard could spot it, no one heard.

it merely wasn’t a metaphor or a rat running across the floor. rather, it was a man. he owned a pair of brown, sharp, lukewarm eyes, the ones of which intimidated anyone who came into their view. he sported a black suit, the material contrasting sharply against the while walls of the museum but hid well in the shadows. his hands were clasped behind him, as if he were waiting for someone. he was not being ill-advised, his eyes still keen and on the lookout.

“you are not allowed here,” a voice whispered right next to his ear, deep and breathy, “this is private property.”

the suited man paused for a moment before swiftly hitting the unknown figure in the side with his elbow, turning and pulling him into a headlock as his hand clamped over the figure’s mouth. it only took the hazel-eyed man a moment to realize that the person he was holding was not an unsuspecting guard, rather one of his team members.

“morgan,” the man growled, letting go of the now laughing figure, “that is not amusing. you’re being ludicrous, we have a job to do.”

“come on, a. hotch, my man.” morgan grinned, taking a few steps back, “you’re too stiff, i’m trying to loosen you up a bit.”

“loosen me up? morgan, you have nothing to lose so you get to mess around. i have a family and about a hundred million dollars of damage done under my belt, if i go back to prison, it’s back to zero for me. and don’t call me that.”

“aaron.” morgan spieled, his grin shining like a car’s headlights, “aaron, aaron, aaron-”

“it’s hotchner to you.” the man, whose name appeared to be aaron hotchner, snapped, checking his watch. it was almost time.

“or sir,” morgan continued to speak as he carefully checked the entrance to the room they were in, “since you seem to be oh, so domineering.”

aaron’s face contorted into a scowl but he had to remind himself that morgan always acts like this, he has dealt with him for years. plus, he shouldn’t worry about his words, the job was more important.

“did jj get back to you?” he asked.

“yeah, her and emily are in position.” morgan answered, now becoming more serious.

aaron’s phone buzzed quietly and he pulled it out to check who had notified him. it was from rossi, stating that the plan was ready to go on his command.

“is everything okay?” morgan questioned, to which the suited man nodded. the two of them took their last deep breaths and aaron tilted his head in the direction of the room's entrance, leading out into the main hall. they would’ve had to worry about cameras if it weren’t for their technical analyst’s expertise, making the mission a whole lot simpler.

aaron took the first steps forward and out of the room, immediately flanking the wall. morgan followed close behind him. the two traversed the hall in silence, as if they were floating across the tile like otherworldly beings. they reached the end of the hallway and found themselves at the east side of a large auditorium-like room. since it was the middle of the night, no one was here. no late-night university students finishing their art studies and, thankfully, no guards. yet.

“we'll wait here," aaron said, stepping into the center of the room.

"well then," morgan began, "let's see what this is all about."

the two of them waited, listening for the faintest sound. nothing disturbed them during their time in there, which worried aaron. either the guards were being lazy tonight or they, too, had something up their sleeves. a few minutes passed until something caught aaron’s ear. there was a slight clicking sound coming from the north west side of the room. he looked up, locking eyes with another team member.

it was the so-called “kid genius,” spencer reid. he was rapping his knuckles against the balcony’s railing; the team’s way of getting each other’s attention. to others, it may just sound like the old museum settling or a rodent running across the floor but, if you listened very closely, it was different. it wasn’t sporadic like small feet, moreover a simple metronome, sounding like a heartbeat. it was amplified as it reverberated across all frequencies of sound; from the tiniest violin to the loudest ram's horn.

no words were shared between the three men then. aaron nodded, reid gave a thumbs up, and morgan cleared his throat. everything was about to begin.

the suited man checked his watch as reid disappeared behind the balcony’s curtain, noticing that they were on time. he moved forward to the left wing’s door as morgan took the right, the both of them pushing through.

they would all be separated for a moment. with what aaron remembered, morgan would be heading toward the main art museum, his job was to grab as much stuff from the front exhibit as he could and bring it back to the van they had parked out back. rossi would help him in that endeavor, since they couldn’t fit more than three items in the backpacks they carried. reid was in charge of figuring out where extra cameras and security guards were since, well, he had an eidetic memory and remembered everyone’s watch schedules. garcia was housed in the van, making sure that if any of the guards noticed that the cameras were off, they wouldn’t be able to turn them back on. jj and emily had the task of taking things from the back exhibit, following along with what morgan and rossi were doing.

and aaron, well, he had the task of taking out the security guards one-by-one to make sure that their whole mission would be successful.

he moved forward, hugging the wall so he’d be hidden in the shadows. his hand slipped into his pocket, grabbing the earpiece that garcia had made for all of them prior. the moment he clipped it on, it buzzed and made a brief static sound before reid’s voice came through.

“hotch,” the boy said, “can you hear me?”

“loud and clear.” aaron whispered back, looking around before carefully making his way into another room, staying in there for a moment.

“i think one of the guards should be coming your way.” reid stated, his connection a little jumpy, “if you don’t get him now, he’ll be heading toward the front exhibit where morgan and rossi are.”

“you think?” aaron breathed as he peeked around the corner. just as reid said, a man was beginning to walk down the corridor he was situated next to, his flashlight bouncing off the walls. the suited man thanked the boy in his earpiece before switching it off momentarily, not wanting any distractions.

he could see the flashlight’s ray hit the area right in front of the entrance he was hiding behind, though the door frame made it impossible for the guard to see him until he was right in front of it. in a moment, the guards boots were hitting the tile right in front of where aaron was standing and that’s when he made his move.

aaron threw himself forward and grabbed the guard’s shoulders, pulling him into the room. the flashlight dropped to the floor and made a clanking sound as he shoved his hand over the guard’s mouth, silencing his confused yelp. as he did with morgan a while ago, aaron pulled the man into a choke hold. as he knew he would, the guard tried to fight back, thrashing in his arms. but, unfortunately for him, aaron was stronger and kept him there for about half a minute until he fell unconscious. the suited man slowly lowered the guard onto the ground and hid him in the shadows, sliding his hand into his back pocket. he pulled out a pocket knife, moving down onto his knees. he pressed a hand to the guard’s chin, pushing his head up so he had access to his neck. aaron held the knife in his hand, resting it just below the man’s adam’s apple, which was slightly moving with his soft breaths. in quick succession, he slid the knife across his neck, severing his jugular veins and cricoid cartilage in one movement. aaron was quick to move away, making sure not to leave any fingerprints in the now pooling blood. he cleaned his knife on the inside of his shirt, swiftly moving out of the room after he made sure that the coast was clear.

the objective usually wasn’t to kill, but he had to for this certain mission.

aaron kept moving, not stopping for any breaks. usually he’d be a little more careful than this but he just wanted to get the job done and over. with the knife resting in his palm, he made his way into the main atrium. it was super dark here because there were no skylights above, making it super hard to see. it would’ve been logical to bring night vision gear, but that would’ve been clunky and dumb looking.

he kept walking forward, scanning for any flashlights. in his haste, aaron didn't realize that he had ran into an unoccupied custodian’s cart, the tools hitting together and making a loud sound that reverberated off the walls. aaron froze and saw his shadow grow in front of him, only meaning that a flashlight was now on his back.

“hey,” he heard a voice call out from behind him, the footsteps getting closer, “the museum closed hours ago. you’re not supposed to be here.”

aaron straightened his stiff posture and turned around, slipping the knife up into his sleeve.

“ah, sorry.” the suited man laughed, looking around, “i was in the bathroom near closing time and when i tried the doors, they were locked. i was looking for someone to help me but i couldn’t find anybody.”

“that’s impossible.” the guard narrowed his eyes, “we have someone monitoring every other hall.”

“well then, i guess i was just really, really lost.” aaron braced himself and threw his fist forward, hitting the guard square in the face. the man stumbled but wasn’t as clumsy as the other guard, delivering a punch back. aaron staggered but only for a split second, grabbing his arm and pulling the man forward, jabbing his knee between his legs. as the guard crumpled momentarily, aaron grabbed at him and shoved him into one of the art exhibits as another guard was nearing the scene. the man recovered quickly and punched aaron in the nose hard, giving him time to run toward the entrance of the exhibit.

though, aaron was faster. he pulled at the back of the guard’s shirt and threw him to the floor with force, moving to slide atop him so he couldn’t move. he grasped the knife again but the man kneed him in the stomach, grabbing onto aaron and making them both roll. the guard managed to get the higher ground, delivering a good punch to aaron’s jaw. he gave the man a moment of glory to make him think he was winning but only a moment later, aaron grabbed the front of the guard’s shirt and stabbed him just between the ribs, puncturing his pulmonary artery. he watched as the man’s face contorted as he brought the knife forward again, holding it there.

they locked eyes and aaron could feel the man’s blood coat his right hand and begin to drip on his face from his mouth, shoving him off. he hovered over the man, making sure he was dead.

though, aaron realized that something was different. his face and nose were warm and painful and he brought a hand up to feel around, noticing that his hand came back stained with blood. aaron panicked for a moment and realized that his blood was mixing with the man’s from his bleeding nose, quickly clamping his hand over his nostrils to try and stop the blood flow. the police could get a dna sample with that and his cover would be blown. he just had to clean it up.

but, as if the universe was against him, he could hear the heavy footfalls of a pair of feet, hearing a man call out another's name. they were probably looking for the man aaron had just killed and it wouldn’t take them long to find him if he stayed. he just had to hope that they wouldn’t check the blood on the floor.

aaron carefully got up and slipped the bloodied knife into his pocket, stepping over the pool of blood and making his way out of the exhibit. he was careful not to touch anything with his bloodied hands, hurrying away so he could find a resting spot.

and the night went on like that. each team member checked in with each other every now and again through the earpieces, all of them moving swiftly. they were experts at this kind of stuff, the types of people who are talked about among other thieves.

two hours had gone by and rossi rang in stating that they should be done for the night. they hadn’t got everything but it was enough to pawn off for a large sum. the team met back near the van, each carrying the last of the items they needed.

they did a headcount and made sure they had everything before splitting again, each going to their respective cars to minimize getting caught. reid hadn’t brought a car with him, though, so he grabbed a ride from aaron, the two of them silent as they pulled out of the museum’s lot.

they didn’t speak until aaron drove the car into the road, leaving the city and entering a more rural area.

“you okay?” reid asked, signalling to aaron’s bloodied face. the bleeding stopped but it was now harder to breathe since his nose was broken, his breaths coming out a little raggedy.

“i’m fine,” he replied, keeping his eyes on the road, “just had a little scuffle.”

the two of them were silent for a moment, coming down from their adrenaline highs as they sped down the road.

"well, that went okay." aaron said as he slowed down, heading onto a darker road. he exhaled, realizing that he had been holding his breath.

"yeah, definitely. the harder part'll be dividing it all up."

"don't need to do that for a few more days, we've got time," aaron said with a smirk. he turned to reid who seemed a bit shaken with the whole situation, but overall fine. this was the boy’s first ever big mission and he definitely proved his worth to the team on this one. aaron knew he was loyal.

"well done, reid. you did really good tonight." he gave his approval with just a few words. it was all reid needed to hear. the boy shyly smiled as he, for the first time that night, relaxed a bit in his seat.

"so, what did you think of the museum?" aaron asked, changing the topic slightly.

“i..." reid seemed to have a hard time answering, “it was... so much. i mean, i’ve stolen things before, but i've never stolen anything this important or big. i mean, this stuff is worth a lot, right?"

"hundreds of thousands of dollars," aaron confirmed, "and there's more to be had. you’ll get your share, kid.”

reid smiled, turning to look out the window. he looked at the disappearing city behind them in the side mirror, squinting his eyes.

“seems as though they’ve already got helicopters at the scene.” the boy said, making a curious noise, “that was quick.”

aaron gripped the steering wheel, the tendons in his hands flexing. usually seeing that the police were already at the scene wasn’t something that irked him, but it was a little terrifying with this mission. of course, it wasn’t ordeal, but the team kept clean. right?

all aaron knew was that he left blood at the scene. if the police were smart enough, they’d run that for dna. they would find him.

he didn't care if he got caught. it was the team. putting the team in jeopardy was something he never wanted to do.

and aaron might’ve just done it.


	2. Chapter 2

“upwards of $800k.”

the slight squeak of a chair that was due for a dose of wd-40 made itself present every now and again, echoing off the walls of an ordinary office.

“it’s a pretty hefty sum, i must admit. i’m used to getting more but i can’t get too greedy, can i?”

the air was fresh and cold, coming in from the two open windows in the room. an electric fireplace was set in the corner of the room, keeping it warm but not too hot.

“that’s not in the job requirements.”

“it isn’t, you’re right.”

david rossi and aaron hotchner housed themselves up inside the office building they had rented out from a friend. they didn’t want to rent an apartment or anything of the sort because that would require leaving a paper trail, and that was something they did not want to do. so, they opted to rent the place through an acquaintance of rossi’s, trusting him with keeping his mouth shut.

the group had their own “top secret sci clearances” like you would have to go through when applying to become a special agent with the fbi.

“well, i compiled everything like you told me to.” rossi cleared his throat and handed aaron, who had an icepack to his eye and nose, a notebook that was opened to a specific page.

“thank you, dave.” aaron set down his legs that were previously resting on the table, narrowing his eyes as he read the small list that rossi had made.

for context, he asked the man what crimes they had specifically committed so they knew how careful they had to be for the next following days, weeks, whatever. aaron cleared his throat and began to read out the list.

“so, first degree burglary, first degree murder-”

“felony murder, mind you.”

“right.”

aaron placed the list down on the table, “we’re felons, again. we know what to do. have you told the team?”

“they know, but they’re not the ones being charged with a felony murder. you’re the only one.”

“it wasn’t part of the plan.” aaron winced as he moved the icepack slightly, being careful with his broken nose, “i should’ve thought about other options. i could’ve bound and gagged them but it’d be a game of how fast i would be. it’s one against, like, ten? i could take them on but it’d be hard to keep them hidden long enough.”

“aaron.”

“what?” he looked up at rossi, noticing the man’s deadpan stare. he was usually one to give that look but it seemed like they had switched roles momentarily.

“you know what you did.” the man’s voice was gruff and low, signalling that now wasn’t the time to be light-hearted. aaron tilted his head to the side and averted his eyes to a painting on the wall. “i understand why you didn’t tell the team immediately. you didn’t want them to worry, right?”

“we’ll lose everything. you know what happens.” aaron breathed, burying his face in his icepack, “i fucked up, i know.”

“you left your blood at the scene, aaron.”

“with what i know about forensics, if they do realize that my blood is mixed in with the guard’s, all they’ll be able to figure out is my age. it’s not like everyone has unique blood like they do fingerprints.”

“in your haste, did you happen to leave a fingerprint in any of the blood?” rossi’s voice had an edge to it. aaron didn’t blame him; the man was trying to see if he had to get rid of him.

“i did not, no. not that i know of, at least.” aaron confirmed, placing the icepack down because his face was growing too numb. “but i do understand the risk anyway. the fbi’s act and bau teams will be on our asses, i’m sure of that. reid did say that he saw helicopters at the museum only a few minutes after we had left.”

“seems like someone didn’t clean up too well.” rossi left the office room, leaving aaron to his devices.

he understood why the man was being so cold. their code of conduct was if you fucked up so badly that you put the team in danger, you’re out. whether that be you cut all ties with everyone, change your identity, everything of the like- or you die. they had a team member years ago that chose to leave on her own accord; elle greenaway. aaron remembered her fondly.

no one has been killed yet. whether that be by police or by each other. the man knew that with his previous mistakes in the past, it would practically be impossible to move to another country and start a new life. the only way for the team to stay safe was if they put a bullet through his head and burned his body.

he could tell that rossi was not in favor of choosing that option just yet even though the safety of the team was more important than their friendships. the team had grown too close.

but, majority rules. if most of the members of the team vote to kill aaron, he wouldn’t have a say in that.

aaron sighed and took a sip of the room temperature whiskey he had poured a while back, waiting a moment to breathe before standing up. maybe he should talk to the team. he pushed through the door, walking down the dark hallway. the floorboards creaked beneath him as he made his way to the living quarters, seeing the orange light of a flame flicker against the floor and walls as he got closer.

warm air accompanied him as he stepped into the room, watching as the team turned to him. morgan and reid were both sitting in chairs near the fire, garcia was leaning against the middle table, and both jj and emily were near the back of the room, chatting to themselves.

“hotch.” morgan greeted him and aaron took a seat next to him, sighing as he relaxed into the back of the chair.

“is everyone doing alright?” he asked and the team looked around, all moving to look at him once more, “what?”

“you’re the one who got injured.” reid said, placing a bookmark in the book he was reading, “we should be asking you that.”

“again, it was just a little scuffle. nothing i can’t handle.” aaron cleared his throat and checked his watch, “i’m just checking in on you all. i’m your supervisor for a reason.”

morgan chuckled and leaned forward, looking at the man, “hotch, we know what happened. you don’t have to hide your mistakes, we all make them.”

aaron knew that. he was just hiding it from the team because of-

“the code of conduct.” emily cut in, walking out of the shadows from the back. the flames in the hearth casted shadows on her face, making her seem more threatening. “you were hiding it because you knew this was the last time you could slip up.”

aaron’s head hung from where he sat. he hated to admit it but knowing that the possibility of his time here being cut short was terrifying. he wasn’t scared of anything, but this? not that fun to think about.

“the vote will take place tomorrow night, if everyone is fine with that.” jj breathed, leaning against emily’s side as they all exchanged glances. “hotch, you should go finish up any unfinished business if the vote does come down to us having to…”

“i know.” aaron quickly said, standing up. “i’m going to head to bed. it’s been an exhausting day and you all should sleep soon as well.”

even with the awkward tension, everyone was able to say their goodnights, going their separate ways. aaron ambled down the quiet hall, slowly going up the staircase that led to the team’s living quarters. his room was at the end of the hall, farthest from everyone.

he closed the door and locked it once he was inside his room. he flicked on the tv that was on the floor and walked into his bathroom, the voices from the news broadcast barely audible as he turned on the shower, keeping it hot.

aaron stripped himself of his clothes and stepped into the now-calescent water, wincing as he laid a hand against the tiled wall. his body ached as the mental and physical struggle of keeping up with his job finally hit him and he leaned against the wall to catch his breath. the hot water was scalding against his skin and he let his eyes close, thinking about everything that had happened that day.

it was truly terrifying to him knowing that his fate was in the hands of his team. tomorrow, they’d decide if he got to live or die. aaron knew that this could’ve happened whenever but he wasn’t expecting for it to happen now. he shook his head and cleaned himself up to try and distract his mind, standing still for another three minutes, resting, recuperating from all the stress. after a bit, he stepped out of the shower, towel drying his hair. he dressed himself again but in his more comfortable clothes, walking toward his bed. he laid down and pulled the comforter around him. he felt the mattress creak as he shifted and closed his eyes.

“please let this be a dream.”


End file.
